Many were shocked by the announcement last Friday that Australian soap opera Neighbours would return to screens in 2023, courtesy of a new deal between production house Fremantle Australia and multinational digital streamer Amazon. Significantly, this announcement overturns many expectations about television in the age of streaming.
When news of Neighbours’ cancellation broke earlier this year, streamers declined to offer a lifeline, with veteran cast member Stefan Dennis (aka Paul Robinson) lamenting that soaps seemed out-of-kilter with the demands of streaming.
